How to fry a planet

[Michael Hopcroft]

It may sound like a "plot-device weapon", but since i HERO people like to point-cost everything out I was wondering how one would design a weapon of si\ufficient power to eradicate a planet from orbit. It could work several different ways, from boring into the core of the planet and causing it to explode (leaving a rapidly-expanding bunch of rocks) to igniting the entire atmosphere 9leaving an airless, burnt-out husk where an inhabited planet once was).

If something is attacking a planet in this fashion, is it safe to assume that any lviing thing that was on that ufnrotunate world automatically perishes? Hopefully no PCs were planetside when it struck.... or could an exceptionally powerful character surive that kind of catastrophe (and, if they were that powerful, be so royally P.O'd that the future does not bode well for the planet's destroyers?)

I leave it to the Champions players to design a character capable of such massive destruction....

[Greatwyrm]

How about a biological weapon? Some kind of lab designed fungus that lives on oxygen and moisture in the air, but produces some sort of harmful gas as a waste product. If you can get enough of it growing fast enough, it will make the atmosphere completely unusable.

This also leaves the planet relatively intact to plunder at your leisure.

[Bartman]

Well the Earth has about 80-100 body + defenses. So a 30-40d6 RKA will blast it ala Death Star. Of course just an RKA will punch into the Earth rather than exploding it. Still not a pleasant experience, but not quite as brutal. So you just need to make sure you add enough megascale area effect so the whole earth gets effected by the thing. 1,000 km per inch should do it. And obvioulsy you need the megascale on the range as well, unless your planet killer is extrordinarily tough. :)

For something more like the B5 Shadow planet killer use the same megascale attack, but drop the dice down to 8-10d6 killing. That'll wipe everything out, kill all inhabitants and level all the buildings but still leave the planet around, if in a less than usable state.

For somthing like the Lexx planet killers drop the area of effect to about 100 km per inch. And drop the damage to about 20-25d6 killing. That'll leave the the planet a molten mess, but it'll take you a few dozen shots.

If you want to just burn off the atmosphere you probably only need 2-5d6 killing. But throw uncontrolled and continuous on with 0 end so you can get several hours - days of burning.

There are dozens of others of course but the key to all of them is megascale.

[McCoy]

In the Enterprise vs. Star Destroyer (http://www.herogames.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=7928) thread we've been discussing this. By my calculations, the Death Star's main weapon was DC 100, 33d6+1 RKA, about 7.21 x 10^10 teratons. I don't have Star Hero, what's the BODY and DEF of the average planet?

[Sociotard]

Figure the surface area of the planet.

Figure out how much a base with said surface area would cost.

Dispel Base.

Ta-Da!

(Okay, that wouldn't work. I never could figure out dispel.)

[Sociotard]

Again, treat the planet as a base.

A planet is hanging in outer space.

A Planet must have a few levels of LS to keep everybody alive.

Drain LS.

again, Ta-Da!

[Lord Mhoram]

You could also go with an Area Effect radius 3-5 D6 RKA, and indirect variant (affects all hexes within area, not just surface ones) assuming area affects don't go underground, and enough area doubles to cover great chunks of the planet. One blast and most every hex within the area is demolished down to the mantle. This is more of a big explosion effect rather than a death star beam effect.

Of you could just get enough area to cover the whole planet - the weapon from Battle beyond the stars.

[Agent Escafarc]

Originally posted by McCoy
In the Enterprise vs. Star Destroyer (http://www.herogames.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=7928) thread we've been discussing this. By my calculations, the Death Star's main weapon was DC 100, 33d6+1 RKA, about 7.21 x 10^10 teratons. I don't have Star Hero, what's the BODY and DEF of the average planet?

According to Star HERO (page 197) the Earth has a BODY of 86 and a DEF of 5. But it also says that GM's should use common sense when it comes to destroying a planet.

[Sociotard]

Well that body and def would certainly make McCoys Death Star work. It almost seems like the planet should have a coulple of low levels of damage reduction (Think about the DC of the Megavolcano under yellowstone. Several hundred Atom bombs worth if I remember right. Anything that can survive that . . .)

[Tim]

Preheat extra large frying pan to 1000 degrees C. Pour in plenty of oil to keep planet from sticking.
After outside is brown turn down to 250 degrees C and let cook until throughly browned throughout.:D

[Mr. Ooze]

Mm..

Get rid of the Oxygen

Add one 1d6 Transform, Oxygen to Nothing

Season with Uncontrolled, Continuous, 0 END.

Megascale to taste.


Or...

Block out the Sun

Start with one Darkness to the sight sense group.

Again, season with 0 END, and Megascale to taste.

Even..

Core it like an apple

Start with tunneling 30"/30 DEF or so.

Add Ramged, Increased range, and 0 END, and AoE.

[Michael Hopcroft]

I remember that in the 1st Edition DC Heroes rules you never wanted to get Superman really mad. He was easily stong enough to punch a good-sized hole in the crust of the Earth with one blow, and the effects of such a thing would be catastrophic.

If you want a practical planet-destroying weapon, igniting the atmosphere is the appeal i would personally take. I also wonder about a 'bomb" that uses Tranform to turn all the Oxygen into the atemosphere into methane -- useful if your race breathes methane and the enemy doesn't.

Speaking oif which, how would you write up a race of methane=breathers to whom oxygen is both poisonous and corrosive. If you breach their containment suits in an oxygen-based atmosphere like Earths, they will quickly die and corrode into dust.

[Greatwyrm]

Originally posted by Michael Hopcroft
Speaking oif which, how would you write up a race of methane=breathers to whom oxygen is both poisonous and corrosive. If you breach their containment suits in an oxygen-based atmosphere like Earths, they will quickly die and corrode into dust.

How about a vulnerability to oxygen? 1d6 or so per turn. Once they take 4x their BODY in damage, they crumble. Treat it like an acid special effect.

[Captain Obvious]

Originally posted by Michael Hopcroft
I remember that in the 1st Edition DC Heroes rules you never wanted to get Superman really mad. He was easily stong enough to punch a good-sized hole in the crust of the Earth with one blow, and the effects of such a thing would be catastrophic.

Superman doesn't get really mad. His Psych Lim: Goody Two-shoes doesn't allow it.

[Vondy]

1d6 Major Transformation (Planet to Space Dust), Cumulative, Delayed Effect (5 Hours), OAF, Bulky (Planet Buster Sattelite Array), 0 End. You could make it megascale if you so desired.

The characters have five hours to stop the array from punching into the earths core and blowing it to bits!

[Lupus]

Originally posted by Agent Escafarc
According to Star HERO (page 197) the Earth has a BODY of 86 and a DEF of 5. But it also says that GM's should use common sense when it comes to destroying a planet. Which I still say is an argument agaisnt blindly applying scaling rules without actually looking at the results and saying 'hey, why haven't nuclear tests blown up the planet yet?' There are points where any system breaks down, and an 86-BODY planet is a prime example.

Hell... a machine-gun could destroy the planet!

[Captain Obvious]

A guy with a sword could destroy the planet with that construction if you want to get right down to it.

I don't know if there is a right way to build a planet-buster without GM fiat entering in in some way. Maybe the Real Weapon limitation...

[Bartman]

Originally posted by Lupus
Which I still say is an argument agaisnt blindly applying scaling rules without actually looking at the results and saying 'hey, why haven't nuclear tests blown up the planet yet?' There are points where any system breaks down, and an 86-BODY planet is a prime example.

Hell... a machine-gun could destroy the planet!

Well actually it couldn't. Look at the rules for destroying inanimate objects. When destroying large objects you calculate how many hexes your attack destroyed based on how much you exceded the destruction of the first hex. 86 body is what you need to do in a single shot. It would take 2 shots at 85 body, 4 at 84, 4000 at 74 etc.

The rules only break down in this case, when you don't actually apply the rules as written.

[Alcamtar]

Originally posted by Sociotard
It almost seems like the planet should have a coulpe of low levels of damage reduction (Think about the DC of the Megavolcano under yellowstone. Several hundred Atom bombs worth if I remember right. Anything that can survive that . . .)

Thinking about volcanoes, you can "destroy" rock by melting it... but then it turns to rock again. You could blow a planet apart, but eventually it will re-form as gravity draws the debris back together.

So maybe the Earth should have regeneration?

Anyway, you really have to nail down what you mean by "destroy". Killing all the life is relatively easy, but making an enormous mass of rock and iron suddenly disappear and never come back is a lot harder.

Mike

[Vondy]

Originally posted by Alcamtar

So maybe the Earth should have regeneration?

Mike

That's a big consolation for the inhabitants...